Monuments of the early church . ced only in the centre;ind at the corners. Figure 176represents a curtain of about thethird century — plain tapestry ofl)rown purple wool upon angular figures which heredecorate the corners are very com-mon ; they were called gammadicefrom their resemblance to theGreek gamma. Segmenta in theshape of a cross, or with the designof the Constantinian monogram,were often used in the Christianperiod upon garments, curtains,and altar cloths. The letterswhich are frequently representedin early art as decorating the cor-ners of the pallium were doubtlessexecute
Monuments of the early church . ced only in the centre;ind at the corners. Figure 176represents a curtain of about thethird century — plain tapestry ofl)rown purple wool upon angular figures which heredecorate the corners are very com-mon ; they were called gammadicefrom their resemblance to theGreek gamma. Segmenta in theshape of a cross, or with the designof the Constantinian monogram,were often used in the Christianperiod upon garments, curtains,and altar cloths. The letterswhich are frequently representedin early art as decorating the cor-ners of the pallium were doubtlessexecuted in tapestry applique; it isuseless to seek in them any signifi-cance beyond the mere purpose of adornment. Figure 175 showsa more elaborate curtain of an expressly Christian design; itbetrays a later period, which demanded a decoration coveringmore or less completely the whole surface. The curtains rep-resented in the fifth-century mosaics of Kavenna (Figs. 135,143) are decorated by segmenta, but at close intervals over the. Fig. 171. —A piece of figured silkfrom Achmim. About sixth cen-tury. The eagle slaying an evilbeast, Christ slaying the dragon (acrocodile), — sym bolizing theChurch and the Empire united inthe suppression of evil. TAPE STB Y 373 whole surface; on the other hand, Figs. 131, 132, and 142repeat the simpler Classical design. Classical simplicity in the use of the segmentum and its kin-dred forms endured, in fact, throughout the whole period withwhich we have to deal. The change which we have to note ischiefly in the tapestry itself. In the fourth century there wassome deterioration in color, but still more in point of accuracyof design. The same patterns were followed, but with anincreasing coarseness in the execution of the geometricaldesigns, and hardness and conventionality in the treatmentof animal forms. The de-cadent taste of the fifthand following centuriesfound compensation forcrudeness of design in alavish use of colors; notonly were there a g
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectchristi, bookyear1901
